Voting For Next UK PM Delayed Due To Ballot Hacking Threat: Report

1,60,000 party members have been given a warning that the arrival of postal ballots could be late as cyber hackers can alter people's ballots.

New Delhi: The voting for the next Prime Minister of Britain has been postponed by conservative party members after an unexpected glitch on Tuesday. The decision was taken after GCHQ spy agency warned that cyber hackers could change people’s ballots, according to various media publications, reported ANI. 

Although the threat was not specifically from any hostile state, rather it was general advice about the voting process and its vulnerabilities, yet it was advised not to go forward with it.

Along with it, 1,60,000 party members have been given a warning that the arrival of postal ballots could be late due to this reason. The postal ballots which were supposed to be sent out from Monday onwards are yet to be issued, and may now arrive probably around August 11 because of this sudden outbreak. 

Under the first online voting system, cyber hackers would possibly amend a large number of ballots online near the end of the contest. Additionally, there was a chance that someone who completed a postal vote and put a picture of their ballot online could be vulnerable to it being changed if there was a visible code on it.

The race for Britain’s next Prime Minister

Former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss are competing head-on to succeed Boris Johnson as UK’s next Prime Minister. 

According to Smarkets, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is leading the race to replace Boris Johnson as UK's next PM by 90.91 per cent whereas Rishi Sunak's chance of becoming the next UK PM has shrunk to 9.09 per cent. Sunak's support shrunk as his party members believed that Sunak has stabbed Boris Johnson in the back. Tory members who back Truss and want her to build the cabinet include Jacob Rees-Mogg, Nadine Dorries and Boris Johnson. On the other hand, Tory members who support Sunak include Tom Tugendhat, Michael Gove, Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt, according to the latest YouGov survey, as mentioned in an ANI report. 

The winner will be announced on September 5, giving the UK its next Prime Minister. 

Tory members who back Truss and want her to build the cabinet include Jacob Rees-Mogg, Nadine Dorries and Boris Johnson. On the other hand, Tory members who support Sunak include Tom Tugendhat, Michael Gove, Sajid Javid, and Jeremy Hunt, according to the latest YouGov survey.

Government Communication Headquarters

GCHQ is a world-leading intelligence, cyber, and security agency with a mission to keep the UK safe.

The organization uses cutting-edge technology, technical ingenuity, and wide-ranging partnerships to identify, analyze and disrupt threats to the UK.

The incident on Tuesday posed a significant threat to the election process, but according to a spokesperson for the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the threat was identified in time, and advice was provided to the Conservative Party.

"Defending UK democratic and electoral processes is a priority for the NCSC and we work closely with all Parliamentary political parties, local authorities, and MPs to provide cyber security guidance and support," an NCSC spokesperson told Reuters.

The spokesperson also added, "As you would expect from the UK's national cyber security authority we provided advice to the Conservative Party on security considerations for online leadership voting,"